Discovery Channel VS. MTV

As we are in the throes of deciding what to pack for our trimester in Africa, my 13-year old daughter and I have been having an almost daily conversation which boils down to: "Mom, we're not going to the Africa you see on the Discovery Channel; why do you want to pack THAT?!" Layla's daily instant messaging conversations with her cousin Amelia are more about the social scene to expect at the International School and the "Fajara Club" (I think it's a country club), while I'm envisioning going out to the villages or the poor urban neighborhoods to do tutoring, or other service projects -- like I did as an idealistic college student in the 1980's. I've found a website called www.bitesandstings.com and ordered heavy-duty anti-mosquito "Permethrin" for spraying on clothing, drinking water tablets for when we're parched and out in the bush, sting-eze, and controlled-release all-day sunblock. I'm packing clothing that will wash and wear well and that we'll give away at the end of our stay. Layla (and her 11-year old sister, Anisa, who is just as -- or more -- fashion-conscious) plans to take her Abercrombie- American Eagle wardrobe.

I think they need closed-toe shoes that wear well in the omni-present, thick, red dirt that I remember from 15 years ago, and they want to take their super lightweight (and expensive) Pumas and summer essentials, flip-flops. I'm worried that parasites on the ground can get into their feet, and they insist that Amelia's I.M.'s indicate this is not an issue. Again, "we're not going to Disovery Channel Africa!"

At the core of these debates is a feeling I am desperately trying to fight; which goes against my grain as an "internationalist:" WORRY about exposing my children to the unknown in a developing -- poor -- country. My core belief is in the Oneness of Humanity and in adapting to our surroundings. At the same time, my first instinct is to protect my children. So, I'm aiming for a happy medium in packing our suitcases, more like The Learning Channel meets Comedy Central...

Because We Can!

The word is out. We made the decision. We talked to our school administrators and teachers. We cleared our calendars. We bought the tickets. We got the Visa's (a $500 surprise expense). We've been vaccinated (about $1,000 surprise expense). We are going to The Gambia. We are going to be out of the country for a full three months. We're going to experience life and school and service in a totally new environment.

This decision started off as a two-week vacation we have been wanting to take for a very long time. Our close family (my husband's brother Bozorg, his wife Sherry and their three children, ages 12, 14, 16 -- around the ages of our older daughters) have been living in this tiny nation on the West African coast for many years. Alex and I visited them 15 years ago, before we had kids. Given our family in the country -- whom we are all very close to -- and our interest in getting more out of the trip than simply tourism, we thought about staying for a month to experience life there. Then, Bozorg said, "why don't you stay for a full term of school, enroll the girls, and really see what it's like here?!" It took me about 90 seconds of deep internal deliberation before I said "O.K.!" Of course, much preparation has followed; but it feels like we are doing the right thing -- it's actually all coming together.

My 11-year old daughter said that some of the kids in her school look at her funny and ask "WHY are you going to Africa?" Or, as one flabbergasted kid mimicked comedian Dave Chapelle, “Africa, Africa?” I think the most straight-forward reason we're going is ... because we can. And the most complicated thing we'll do there is just ..."BE." This blog will chronicle our adventures of going and being and hopefully, doing, in an environment that is so different from the only community that my children have ever known -- in Philadelphia's privileged Main Line suburbs.

We leave on January 7, spend a few days with cousins in England, and then arrive at the Banjul-Yundum International Airport on January 12. Over the next few days we'll be getting ready, waiting for on-line orders ranging from Nike Air Force 1 sneakers (for nephew #1) to books for tutoring to sting repellant to arrive, visiting with family from around the US, and getting a few more vaccinations and supplies.

I have been thinking hard about the idea of raising children who feel at home in the world and grow up with a global perspective since I returned from a business trip to China four years ago. This sabbatical -- as I call it -- to Africa will give us a chance to test some of my ideas on world citizenship and open up the world for us and for anyone who wishes to join us on this adventure by reading along.